Thursday, January 30, 2014

February Monthly Theme: Gunas

In Samkhya philosophy there are three major gunas which serve as the fundamental operating principles or "tendencies" of prakṛti (universal nature) which are called: sattva guna, and rajas guna, tamas guna. The three primary gunas are generally accepted to be associated with creation (satva), preservation (rajas), and destruction (tamas). The entire creation and its process of evolution is carried out by these three major gunas.

All material nature is made up the interplay of three energies or "gunas." Part of the work of yoga is to go beyond the limitation of seeing life as forms and concepts, and to see the underlying qualities of things. 
The gunas are a great map for navigating your way through life. When you can recognize which of these energies is at play in your life, it makes it so much easier to bring about a state of balance. 



Rajas:
Generally is a passionate, frenetic, creative, tumultuous energy. 
People that are rajasic are full of desire, thirsting for worldly enjoyment, and even at more extreme ends of the scale, fueled by competition and ambitiousness. The Sanskrit root means "impure." It is also related to the root rakta, "redness." And raga, "passion." If you think of living in a bright red room or a woman wearing a red dress, you can feel the energy of Rajas.



Food that is Rajasic is quite stimulating (often times over stimulating). Eg: spicy, sour, acid foods like coffee, hot peppers, onions and so on. If you find yourself eating really quickly too, this too can be rajasic. If you have ever been to a big smorgasbord and eaten way too many combinations of food, you would have belly will be feeling the effect of Rajas Guna.



Tamas:


Tamas is dull, insensible, gloomy and dark energy. The Sanskrit word literally means "darkness, dark-blue, black."
 People that are tamasic are gloomy, sluggish, dull and blinded by greed. Sometimes people who are tamasic can be characterized as lazy and slothful. If you spend the night drinking tequila in Margaritaville, the next morning you will find yourself deep in the heart of Tamasicville. On the darker end of the tamasic scale, they can be unconscious of the needs others, dark and destructive.



Food that is Tamasic is stale, under or over ripe. Heavy meats. Canned, reheated or fermented foods. Eating too much is Tamasic.

Sattva:
Sattva is a calm, peaceful and clear energy. The Sanskrit word is based on the principle "Sat" or "being, as it should be, perfect." 

People that are Sattvic are calm, centered, compassionate and unselfish.



Food that is Sattvic is nourishing & easy to digest. Cereals, Fresh Fruit, Pure Water, Veggies, Milk, Yogurt.